El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
Leadership & Managing People
Strategy / MBA Resources
Case Study SWOT Analysis Solution
Case Study Description of El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8
The El Coyote Mexican Cafi??, more commonly known as i??El Coyote,i?? is a family owned restaurant located in Los Angeles, California. The restaurant faced criticism from pro-gay rights activists after the manager, and daughter of the owner, made a personal donation to support California Ballot Proposition 8, which activists associated with the restaurant rather than the individual. The case transpires over an eight-day period from November 4, 2008, which was the election day when the ballot proposition passed, to November 12, 2008 which was when the manager held an open breakfast at El Coyote to publicly discuss the issue.The central tension in the case revolves around how the manageri??s donation to support a measure that legally defines marriage as i??between a man and a womani?? has garnered the restaurant with unwanted attention despite being a personal contribution separate from and not endorsed by the business. The goal of the case is to challenge students to think about tensions firms face in managing the external environment of their businesses in the face of both: (i) campaign finance and election issues; and, (ii) activists who may not understand all of the underlying facts.
Swot Analysis of "El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8" written by Brian K. Richter, Anisha George includes – strengths weakness that are internal strategic factors of the organization, and opportunities and threats that Coyote I facing as an external strategic factors. Some of the topics covered in El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 case study are - Strategic Management Strategies, Strategy and Leadership & Managing People.
Some of the macro environment factors that can be used to understand the El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 casestudy better are - – there is increasing trade war between United States & China, increasing transportation and logistics costs, increasing energy prices, central banks are concerned over increasing inflation, increasing commodity prices, increasing inequality as vast percentage of new income is going to the top 1%, increasing household debt because of falling income levels,
challanges to central banks by blockchain based private currencies, competitive advantages are harder to sustain because of technology dispersion, etc
Introduction to SWOT Analysis of El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8
SWOT stands for an organization’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats . At Oak Spring University , we believe that protagonist in El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 case study can use SWOT analysis as a strategic management tool to assess the current internal strengths and weaknesses of the Coyote I, and to figure out the opportunities and threats in the macro environment – technological, environmental, political, economic, social, demographic, etc in which Coyote I operates in.
According to Harvard Business Review, 75% of the managers use SWOT analysis for various purposes such as – evaluating current scenario, strategic planning, new venture feasibility, personal growth goals, new market entry, Go To market strategies, portfolio management and strategic trade-off assessment, organizational restructuring, etc.
SWOT Objectives / Importance of SWOT Analysis and SWOT Matrix
SWOT analysis of El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 can be done for the following purposes –
1. Strategic planning using facts provided in El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 case study
2. Improving business portfolio management of Coyote I
3. Assessing feasibility of the new initiative in Leadership & Managing People field.
4. Making a Leadership & Managing People topic specific business decision
5. Set goals for the organization
6. Organizational restructuring of Coyote I
Strengths El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Strengths in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The strengths of Coyote I in El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 Harvard Business Review case study are -
Ability to lead change in Leadership & Managing People field
– Coyote I is one of the leading players in its industry. Over the years it has not only transformed the business landscape in its segment but also across the whole industry. The ability to lead change has enabled Coyote I in – penetrating new markets, reaching out to new customers, and providing different value propositions to different customers in the international markets.
Learning organization
- Coyote I is a learning organization. It has inculcated three key characters of learning organization in its processes and operations – exploration, creativity, and expansiveness. The work place at Coyote I is open place that encourages instructiveness, ideation, open minded discussions, and creativity. Employees and leaders in El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 Harvard Business Review case study emphasize – knowledge, initiative, and innovation.
Analytics focus
– Coyote I is putting a lot of focus on utilizing the power of analytics in business decision making. This has put it among the leading players in the industry. The technology infrastructure suggested by Brian K. Richter, Anisha George can also help it to harness the power of analytics for – marketing optimization, demand forecasting, customer relationship management, inventory management, information sharing across the value chain etc.
Sustainable margins compare to other players in Leadership & Managing People industry
– El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 firm has clearly differentiated products in the market place. This has enabled Coyote I to fetch slight price premium compare to the competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry. The sustainable margins have also helped Coyote I to invest into research and development (R&D) and innovation.
Successful track record of launching new products
– Coyote I has launched numerous new products in last few years, keeping in mind evolving customer preferences and competitive pressures. Coyote I has effective processes in place that helps in exploring new product needs, doing quick pilot testing, and then launching the products quickly using its extensive distribution network.
Operational resilience
– The operational resilience strategy in the El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 Harvard Business Review case study comprises – understanding the underlying the factors in the industry, building diversified operations across different geographies so that disruption in one part of the world doesn’t impact the overall performance of the firm, and integrating the various business operations and processes through its digital transformation drive.
Diverse revenue streams
– Coyote I is present in almost all the verticals within the industry. This has provided firm in El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 case study a diverse revenue stream that has helped it to survive disruptions such as global pandemic in Covid-19, financial disruption of 2008, and supply chain disruption of 2021.
Ability to recruit top talent
– Coyote I is one of the leading recruiters in the industry. Managers in the El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 are in a position to attract the best talent available. The firm has a robust talent identification program that helps in identifying the brightest.
Highly skilled collaborators
– Coyote I has highly efficient outsourcing and offshoring strategy. It has resulted in greater operational flexibility and bringing down the costs in highly price sensitive segment. Secondly the value chain collaborators of the firm in El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 HBR case study have helped the firm to develop new products and bring them quickly to the marketplace.
Digital Transformation in Leadership & Managing People segment
- digital transformation varies from industry to industry. For Coyote I digital transformation journey comprises differing goals based on market maturity, customer technology acceptance, and organizational culture. Coyote I has successfully integrated the four key components of digital transformation – digital integration in processes, digital integration in marketing and customer relationship management, digital integration into the value chain, and using technology to explore new products and market opportunities.
Low bargaining power of suppliers
– Suppliers of Coyote I in the sector have low bargaining power. El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 has further diversified its suppliers portfolio by building a robust supply chain across various countries. This helps Coyote I to manage not only supply disruptions but also source products at highly competitive prices.
Superior customer experience
– The customer experience strategy of Coyote I in the segment is based on four key concepts – personalization, simplification of complex needs, prompt response, and continuous engagement.
Weaknesses El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 | Internal Strategic Factors
What are Weaknesses in SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The weaknesses of El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 are -
Employees’ incomplete understanding of strategy
– From the instances in the HBR case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8, it seems that the employees of Coyote I don’t have comprehensive understanding of the firm’s strategy. This is reflected in number of promotional campaigns over the last few years that had mixed messaging and competing priorities. Some of the strategic activities and services promoted in the promotional campaigns were not consistent with the organization’s strategy.
High dependence on star products
– The top 2 products and services of the firm as mentioned in the El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 HBR case study still accounts for major business revenue. This dependence on star products in has resulted into insufficient focus on developing new products, even though Coyote I has relatively successful track record of launching new products.
Low market penetration in new markets
– Outside its home market of Coyote I, firm in the HBR case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 needs to spend more promotional, marketing, and advertising efforts to penetrate international markets.
Lack of clear differentiation of Coyote I products
– To increase the profitability and margins on the products, Coyote I needs to provide more differentiated products than what it is currently offering in the marketplace.
Slow decision making process
– As mentioned earlier in the report, Coyote I has a very deliberative decision making approach. This approach has resulted in prudent decisions, but it has also resulted in missing opportunities in the industry over the last five years. Coyote I even though has strong showing on digital transformation primary two stages, it has struggled to capitalize the power of digital transformation in marketing efforts and new venture efforts.
Interest costs
– Compare to the competition, Coyote I has borrowed money from the capital market at higher rates. It needs to restructure the interest payment and costs so that it can compete better and improve profitability.
Capital Spending Reduction
– Even during the low interest decade, Coyote I has not been able to do capital spending to the tune of the competition. This has resulted into fewer innovations and company facing stiff competition from both existing competitors and new entrants who are disrupting the industry using digital technology.
High bargaining power of channel partners
– Because of the regulatory requirements, Brian K. Richter, Anisha George suggests that, Coyote I is facing high bargaining power of the channel partners. So far it has not able to streamline the operations to reduce the bargaining power of the value chain partners in the industry.
No frontier risks strategy
– After analyzing the HBR case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8, it seems that company is thinking about the frontier risks that can impact Leadership & Managing People strategy. But it has very little resources allocation to manage the risks emerging from events such as natural disasters, climate change, melting of permafrost, tacking the rise of artificial intelligence, opportunities and threats emerging from commercialization of space etc.
Products dominated business model
– Even though Coyote I has some of the most successful products in the industry, this business model has made each new product launch extremely critical for continuous financial growth of the organization. firm in the HBR case study - El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 should strive to include more intangible value offerings along with its core products and services.
High operating costs
– Compare to the competitors, firm in the HBR case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 has high operating costs in the. This can be harder to sustain given the new emerging competition from nimble players who are using technology to attract Coyote I 's lucrative customers.
Opportunities El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 | External Strategic Factors
What are Opportunities in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The opportunities highlighted in the Harvard Business Review case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 are -
Remote work and new talent hiring opportunities
– The widespread usage of remote working technologies during Covid-19 has opened opportunities for Coyote I to expand its talent hiring zone. According to McKinsey Global Institute, 20% of the high end workforce in fields such as finance, information technology, can continously work from remote local post Covid-19. This presents a really great opportunity for Coyote I to hire the very best people irrespective of their geographical location.
Better consumer reach
– The expansion of the 5G network will help Coyote I to increase its market reach. Coyote I will be able to reach out to new customers. Secondly 5G will also provide technology framework to build new tools and products that can help more immersive consumer experience and faster consumer journey.
Building a culture of innovation
– managers at Coyote I can make experimentation a productive activity and build a culture of innovation using approaches such as – mining transaction data, A/B testing of websites and selling platforms, engaging potential customers over various needs, and building on small ideas in the Leadership & Managing People segment.
Buying journey improvements
– Coyote I can improve the customer journey of consumers in the industry by using analytics and artificial intelligence. El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 suggest that firm can provide automated chats to help consumers solve their own problems, provide online suggestions to get maximum out of the products and services, and help consumers to build a community where they can interact with each other to develop new features and uses.
Manufacturing automation
– Coyote I can use the latest technology developments to improve its manufacturing and designing process in Leadership & Managing People segment. It can use CAD and 3D printing to build a quick prototype and pilot testing products. It can leverage automation using machine learning and artificial intelligence to do faster production at lowers costs, and it can leverage the growth in satellite and tracking technologies to improve inventory management, transportation, and shipping.
Low interest rates
– Even though inflation is raising its head in most developed economies, Coyote I can still utilize the low interest rates to borrow money for capital investment. Secondly it can also use the increase of government spending in infrastructure projects to get new business.
Identify volunteer opportunities
– Covid-19 has impacted working population in two ways – it has led to people soul searching about their professional choices, resulting in mass resignation. Secondly it has encouraged people to do things that they are passionate about. This has opened opportunities for businesses to build volunteer oriented socially driven projects. Coyote I can explore opportunities that can attract volunteers and are consistent with its mission and vision.
Changes in consumer behavior post Covid-19
– Consumer behavior has changed in the Leadership & Managing People industry because of Covid-19 restrictions. Some of this behavior will stay once things get back to normal. Coyote I can take advantage of these changes in consumer behavior to build a far more efficient business model. For example consumer regular ordering of products can reduce both last mile delivery costs and market penetration costs. Coyote I can further use this consumer data to build better customer loyalty, provide better products and service collection, and improve the value proposition in inflationary times.
Developing new processes and practices
– Coyote I can develop new processes and procedures in Leadership & Managing People industry using technology such as automation using artificial intelligence, real time transportation and products tracking, 3D modeling for concept development and new products pilot testing etc.
Lowering marketing communication costs
– 5G expansion will open new opportunities for Coyote I in the field of marketing communication. It will bring down the cost of doing business, provide technology platform to build new products in the Leadership & Managing People segment, and it will provide faster access to the consumers.
Increase in government spending
– As the United States and other governments are increasing social spending and infrastructure spending to build economies post Covid-19, Coyote I can use these opportunities to build new business models that can help the communities that Coyote I operates in. Secondly it can use opportunities from government spending in Leadership & Managing People sector.
Reforming the budgeting process
- By establishing new metrics that will be used to evaluate both existing and potential projects Coyote I can not only reduce the costs of the project but also help it in integrating the projects with other processes within the organization.
Reconfiguring business model
– The expansion of digital payment system, the bringing down of international transactions costs using Bitcoin and other blockchain based currencies, etc can help Coyote I to reconfigure its entire business model. For example it can used blockchain based technologies to reduce piracy of its products in the big markets such as China. Secondly it can use the popularity of e-commerce in various developing markets to build a Direct to Customer business model rather than the current Channel Heavy distribution network.
Threats El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 External Strategic Factors
What are Threats in the SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix / Weighted SWOT Analysis
The threats mentioned in the HBR case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 are -
Increasing wage structure of Coyote I
– Post Covid-19 there is a sharp increase in the wages especially in the jobs that require interaction with people. The increasing wages can put downward pressure on the margins of Coyote I.
High dependence on third party suppliers
– Coyote I high dependence on third party suppliers can disrupt its processes and delivery mechanism. For example -the current troubles of car makers because of chip shortage is because the chip companies started producing chips for electronic companies rather than car manufacturers.
Environmental challenges
– Coyote I needs to have a robust strategy against the disruptions arising from climate change and energy requirements. EU has identified it as key priority area and spending 30% of its 880 billion Euros European post Covid-19 recovery funds on green technology. Coyote I can take advantage of this fund but it will also bring new competitors in the Leadership & Managing People industry.
Capital market disruption
– During the Covid-19, Dow Jones has touched record high. The valuations of a number of companies are way beyond their existing business model potential. This can lead to capital market correction which can put a number of suppliers, collaborators, value chain partners in great financial difficulty. It will directly impact the business of Coyote I.
New competition
– After the dotcom bust of 2001, financial crisis of 2008-09, the business formation in US economy had declined. But in 2020 alone, there are more than 1.5 million new business applications in United States. This can lead to greater competition for Coyote I in the Leadership & Managing People sector and impact the bottomline of the organization.
Stagnating economy with rate increase
– Coyote I can face lack of demand in the market place because of Fed actions to reduce inflation. This can lead to sluggish growth in the economy, lower demands, lower investments, higher borrowing costs, and consolidation in the field.
Backlash against dominant players
– US Congress and other legislative arms of the government are getting tough on big business especially technology companies. The digital arm of Coyote I business can come under increasing regulations regarding data privacy, data security, etc.
Increasing international competition and downward pressure on margins
– Apart from technology driven competitive advantage dilution, Coyote I can face downward pressure on margins from increasing competition from international players. The international players have stable revenue in their home market and can use those resources to penetrate prominent markets illustrated in HBR case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 .
Shortening product life cycle
– it is one of the major threat that Coyote I is facing in Leadership & Managing People sector. It can lead to higher research and development costs, higher marketing expenses, lower customer loyalty, etc.
High level of anxiety and lack of motivation
– the Great Resignation in United States is the sign of broader dissatisfaction among the workforce in United States. Coyote I needs to understand the core reasons impacting the Leadership & Managing People industry. This will help it in building a better workplace.
Barriers of entry lowering
– As technology is more democratized, the barriers to entry in the industry are lowering. It can presents Coyote I with greater competitive threats in the near to medium future. Secondly it will also put downward pressure on pricing throughout the sector.
Instability in the European markets
– European Union markets are facing three big challenges post Covid – expanded balance sheets, Brexit related business disruption, and aggressive Russia looking to distract the existing security mechanism. Coyote I will face different problems in different parts of Europe. For example it will face inflationary pressures in UK, France, and Germany, balance sheet expansion and demand challenges in Southern European countries, and geopolitical instability in the Eastern Europe.
Easy access to finance
– Easy access to finance in Leadership & Managing People field will also reduce the barriers to entry in the industry, thus putting downward pressure on the prices because of increasing competition. Coyote I can utilize it by borrowing at lower rates and invest it into research and development, capital expenditure to fortify its core competitive advantage.
Weighted SWOT Analysis of El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 Template, Example
Not all factors mentioned under the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants in the SWOT Analysis are equal. Managers in the HBR case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 needs to zero down on the relative importance of each factor mentioned in the Strengths, Weakness, Opportunities, and Threats quadrants.
We can provide the relative importance to each factor by assigning relative weights. Weighted SWOT analysis process is a three stage process –
First stage for doing weighted SWOT analysis of the case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 is to rank the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This will help you to assess the most important strengths and weaknesses of the firm and which one of the strengths and weaknesses mentioned in the initial lists are marginal and can be left out.
Second stage for conducting weighted SWOT analysis of the Harvard case study El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 is to give probabilities to the external strategic factors thus better understanding the opportunities and threats arising out of macro environment changes and developments.
Third stage of constructing weighted SWOT analysis of El Coyote Mexican Cafe in the Wake of Proposition 8 is to provide strategic recommendations includes – joining likelihood of external strategic factors such as opportunities and threats to the internal strategic factors – strengths and weaknesses. You should start with external factors as they will provide the direction of the overall industry. Secondly by joining probabilities with internal strategic factors can help the company not only strategic fit but also the most probably strategic trade-off that Coyote I needs to make to build a sustainable competitive advantage.